After winning the last three games by an average of 76 points, the Rebels faced the Dennis Pagan coached Northern Nights in round eight. The Knights had developed their own momentum with a ten goal win over reigning premiers Murray last week, creating a great challenge for the game at Eastern Oval.
During the week, Northern’s extreme pressure they were able to produce on their opponent was highlighted by coach Glenn Wilkins. He labelled our protection of the ball carrier the major key performance indicator for the game, where our shepherd count would have to be high to break down their pressure and get on top of them on the scoreboard. Training Thursday night showed great enthusiasm because of the challenge that awaited us, before dark set in a St. Pat’s oval.
Following Vic Country duties last week, Jandre Slabbert, Lucas Cook, Oliver Tate and Ben Peters all returned for the game, while Andrew Hooper, David Astbury and Josh Cowan remained in the grandstand after being selected for the first game of the national carnival next week.
The theme of game day was ‘no complacency,’ which was crucial after having such a good start to the year. Windy conditions meant that the Rebels started the game kicking with the wind, but this advantage was wasted, where only one goal was constructed from 17 inside 50’s. We were reduced to 21 men when Slabbert was carried from the ground during this first quarter with a hip injury. The ineffectiveness in our front half was addressed at quarter time, while forward movement was emphasised to try drag back a 13-point quarter time deficit.
This was achieved in the second quarter when Kev Bourke and Josh Free continued their good work in the middle of the ground, and at the same time, the backline locked down and rebounded well to keep the Knights goalless.
The low scoring nature of the game continued in the second half, where skill level was down. Ben Peters got the team going across half forward, leading hard up the ground as a reliable option. The game remained tight all through the half, and the Rebels hit the front with just minutes to go when Bourke kicked a running goal, while rolling an ankle in the same action. With only seconds to go, Dylan Parish punched, and headed, a Northern shot on goal through for a point, proving he can do it up both ends, leaving us with a
four point win.
The game left some good positives, and also a list of areas for improvement, especially our overuse of the handball, which will certainly be concentrated on during the week. Next week will be another big game at Skilled Stadium against Geelong, who are undefeated and remain the yard-stick of the competition.
Last Modified on 25/05/2009 11:28